Happy food accidents are the best

I haven’t had a day this busy in ages and ages. The to-do list I posted this morning grew exponentially when I realized I had left off quite a few important items.

After scrubbing and cleaning our apartment from top to bottom for two hours, I was beyond hungry. Since it was only 10:30 in the morning, a snack was in order.

I made me a green monster featuring:

• a frozen banana
• a cup of milk
• a handful of spinach
• a tbsp. peanut butter
• a handful of ice

I poured it into one of my favorite cups, that just so happens to also be an example of Japanese pottery. So beautiful. And a perfect size to hold my GM.

A few more chores down and hours later I realized it was lunch time, but I also needed a shower and was running short on time. I threw 1/4 cup of rice and some water into my rice cooker and cut up some carrots, which went into the oven. And into the shower I went while my food cooked. The plan was to make spinach tuna wraps and enjoy rice and carrots on the side.

But, I ended up eating this:

I love happy food accidents that turn out perfectly. When I hopped out of the shower I realized my rice was done, but my carrots had cooked way too long and shriveled into almost nothing. I also unfortunately found out that the tuna I had put in the fridge sometime last week was a few days past its prime and I was too nervous to try eating it.

What to do, what to do? I had to think on my feet because 1. I was standing there in my towel dripping water all over the kitchen and 2. I needed to get lunch eaten very soon to finish other necessities in time to leave and catch my train for work.

A stroke of genius must have occurred because this little food accident was amazing. I took a tortilla and put the spinach “wrap” I had already concocted on top of it, as well as a sprinkling of cheese. Dumped my cooked rice on top of that and added a few chopped onions, my over-cooked carrots, some pepper, salt, parsley, and chili powder. Mikan served on the side. Without realizing it I created a meatless burrito. And it tasted delightful. I will (on purpose) create these again in the future. I didn’t miss the meat at all.

I did get a little “snacky” around the time to leave for work and had a piece of cheese, some sunflower seeds, an apple and another mikan.

The husband had dinner ready when I returned home from work. Parmesan Italian chicken breasts with mashed potatoes. Yum.

I think I might have overdone it a bit today on my foot. Two hours of moving around and cleaning, plus two bike trips and some walking from the train station to work left my poor big toe aching by the time I made it back through my front door tonight. No good. I’ve decided that not counting physical activity that I can’t avoid, tomorrow is a mandatory rest day.

I really want to get back to running soon. I’m afraid it might not happen as soon as I want.

Things I Love About Japan

One of the few things that made me seriously nervous about moving to Japan was knowing we would not have access to a car. I’ve spent the last six years using a car to get anywhere and everywhere I want to go, so what was I supposed to do without one? To say I was apprehensive would be an understatement.

Luckily, Japan has one of the best train systems in the world. They’re rarely ever late and you can use them to get almost everywhere. I take the train to work every morning and ride it back home, too. And I love it. Surprisingly, two months have gone by and I still don’t miss my car, yet.

Oh sure there are days when I think, “Man, a car would be good right now.” Like when I need to haul a lot of groceries or it’s raining outside. But those times are so few and far in between the times when I think “Man I’m glad I’m not putting my money towards gas,” or “I’m glad I can use my bike instead of a car–it’s better for me and the environment.”

Japan is so commuter and bicycle friendly. Everyone, from children to old women, owns a bike and uses it to get where they’re going when possible. There are automobiles and many people have those, too, but I think people are more willing to only use those when necessary than Americans will ever be.

There are even parking lots just for bikes here, like this one at my local train station:

Now, on the flip side, there are certainly some negative things about not having an automobile and relying on the train system and bikes. For one, it takes a decent amount more time to get anywhere you want to go. You can’t just pick up and leave… you have to plan and figure out when trains arrive and depart from which stations. And you have to buy train tickets to go and then return home. But those are so much cheaper than paying for gas!

I love relying on my bike though because while it’s getting me where I’m going, it’s also allowing me to burn calories, get stronger, and exercise. All powered by me and requiring no fuel. Score!